Opinion: Stop Telling Women How to Not Get Raped-OUR VICTIM BLAMING TACTICS DO LITTLE TO PREVENT SEXUAL ASSAULT from Ebony News and Views, 1/14/12

The article reports, “New rule for 2012: No more ad campaigns and public service announcements targeted at women to teach them how to avoid rape. It’s not effective, it’s offensive, and it’s also a lie. Telling women that they can behave in a certain way to avoid rape creates a false sense of security and it isn’t the most effective way to lower the horrible statistics which show that 1 in 5 women will become victims of a completed or attempted rape in their lifetime. The numbers for African American women are even higher at nearly 1 in 4. We need anti-rape campaigns that target young men and boys. Campaigns that teach them from a young age how to respect women, and ultimately themselves, and to never ever be rapists.”

Skin-to-skin contact promotes bonding and offers a host of other benefits to babies, dads, and parenting couples. ICADV's Skin to Skin campaign invites men into nurturing caregiving relationships with their children.

NRCDV is proud to offer "My #1Thing," a new 4-part series for DVAM. Each Thursday in October, we will feature the stories from advocates, survivors, and other community members who are working to end gender-based violence.

This Domestic Violence Awareness Month, we're talking about the importance of civic engagement and highlighting the connections between how we vote and the policies that impact survivors’ lives. Check out our October blog post to learn more!